Germany

WASHINGTON — President Trump’s vow to shrink America’s military deployment in Germany has put a new spotlight on the U.S. role in Europe.

There are usually 80,000 to 100,000 troops on the continent, with more than 36,000 in Germany. The Pentagon announced Friday that it would remove 5,000 troops from Germany, and Trump said the next day that he would go “a lot further” than that.

The U.S. military presence is a legacy of World War II, when Americans helped stabilize and rebuild Europe, and the Cold War, when the troops served as a bulwark against Soviet expansion. More recently, the deployment has played a key role supporting operations in the Arctic, Africa and the Middle East including the current conflict with Iran.

But Trump has broken with years of bipartisan consensus, criticizing European allies in NATO and following through on threats to reduce the U.S. commitment to the continent’s security. The recent announcement comes after escalating tensions with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who last week said the U.S. was being “humiliated” by Iran and accused Washington of lacking a clear strategy.

Here’s a look at America’s current deployment in Europe and how it could change.

What to know about the U.S. defense posture in Europe

The U.S. European Command, created in 1947 and known as EUCOM, is one of 11 combat commands within the Defense Department, and covers some 50 countries and territories.

In addition to more than 36,000 troops in Germany, Italy hosts more than 12,000 and there’s another 10,000 in the United Kingdom, according to Pentagon numbers from December.

The Pentagon has offered few details about which troops or operations would be affected in the drawdown announced Friday.

The U.S. increased its European deployment after Russia launched its full-scale war on Ukraine four years ago. NATO allies like Germany have expected for over a year that these troops would be the first to leave.

European deployment has global role

Aside from its role as a deterrent to Russia, the U.S. military presence in Europe helps Washington project power across the globe.

U.S. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, who is the commander in Europe of both U.S. and NATO forces, reinforced the benefits of a strong footprint on the continent to the Senate Armed Services Committee in March.

“It is having capabilities in Europe, munitions in Europe that allow us to help U.S. Africa Command to target terrorists in Africa, or to help U.S. Central Command as they execute Operation Epic Fury,” he told lawmakers, referring to the Iran war. “The distances are shorter, it’s less expensive and it’s much easier to project power.”

Germany hosts the headquarters of the U.S. European and Africa commands, Ramstein Air Base and a medical center in Landstuhl, where casualties from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were treated. U.S. nuclear weapons are also stationed in the country.

The U.S. has approximately 100 nuclear bombs deployed to bases in Europe that would be delivered by aircraft, according to a March estimate from the Federation of American Scientists. The group’s report said the bombs are at bases in Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey, while it’s possible they’re also at a base in the United Kingdom.

A call to move U.S. forces further east in Europe

Even before Trump’s comment Saturday to reporters, Republican leaders of both armed services committees in Congress expressed concern about the Pentagon plan, warning a premature drawdown in Europe would send “the wrong signal to Vladimir Putin” as the Russian president continues his war in Ukraine.

Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama said troops should be shifted to bases in Eastern Europe rather than withdrawn.

The lawmakers also said allies have made “substantial investments to host U.S. troops.”

Wicker and Rogers said the Pentagon, following its announcement Friday, has also decided to cancel the planned deployment to Germany of one of the U.S. Army’s long-range fires battalions, which operate ground-launched missile systems.

Trump’s vision: DIY defense in Europe

As part of its National Defense Strategy announced in January — a sweeping document laying out a vision on everything from deterring China to defending against cyberattacks to disrupting Iran’s nuclear ambitions — the administration said Europe must do more for its own defense.

While “we are and will remain engaged in Europe, we must — and will — prioritize defending the U.S. Homeland and deterring China,” it said.

Among other things, the document noted that Europe’s economic power, while shrinking in relative terms globally, remains significant, and said that Germany’s economy alone “dwarfs that of Russia.”

“Fortunately, our NATO allies are substantially more powerful than Russia — it is not even close,” it said, noting a recent commitment among NATO allies to raise national defense spending to 5% of GDP in total, a push led by Trump.

What Germany has been doing to beef up its forces

Germany has moved to modernize its long-neglected military, or Bundeswehr, since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. That year, it set up a $117 billion special fund to boost Bundeswehr, much of which has been committed to procuring new equipment.

Late last year, Merz’s government announced plans to raise the number of military personnel to 260,000, up from about 180,000. In 2001, when Germany still had conscription, the headcount was 300,000 — more than a third of them conscripts.

Berlin says it will also need around 200,000 reservists, more than double the current figure.

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, in comments to German news agency dpa after the Pentagon’s drawdown plan was announced Friday, acknowledged that Europe must take more responsibility for its own security — and said the Bundeswehr is growing, military equipment is being procured more quickly, and infrastructure is being developed.

Keaten and Finley write for the Associated Press. Keaten reported from Geneva.

The US president has accused some NATO countries of not doing enough to support the US-Israel war on Iran.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte says European leaders have “gotten the message” after United States President Donald Trump announced plans to withdraw 5,000 soldiers from Germany.

Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with NATO allies, accusing them of not doing enough to support the US-Israel war on Iran. Speaking on Monday, Rutte acknowledged “disappointment from the US side”.

“European leaders have gotten the message. They heard the message loud and clear,” Rutte said before a European Political Community meeting in Armenia.

“Europeans are stepping up, a bigger role for Europe and a stronger NATO,” he added.

The Pentagon announced the troop withdrawal from Germany on Friday, days after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Iran was humiliating the US during the negotiations aimed at ending the war.

The European Union’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, called the announcement’s timing a “surprise”.

“I think it shows that we have to really strengthen the European pillar in NATO, and we have to really do more,” Kallas said while stressing that “American troops are not in Europe only for protecting European interests but also American interests.”

Over the weekend, NATO spokesperson Allison Hart said officials in the 32-nation military alliance “are working with the US to understand the details of their decision on force posture in Germany”.

‘Dangerous military intervention’

European criticism of the war on Iran has mounted in recent weeks as the conflict sends shockwaves through the global economy due to the continued disruption to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

Last week, Merz compared the war to previous military quagmires, such as the US invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.

“It is, at the moment, a pretty tangled situation,” he said. “And it is costing us a great deal of money. This conflict, this war against Iran, has a direct impact on our economic output.”

Spain has refused to let the US launch attacks on Iran from its airspace or military bases. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has condemned the war as “unjustified” and a “dangerous military intervention” outside the realm of international law.

In response, Trump called Spain “terrible” and threatened to end all trade ties.

Despite this, Rutte said “more and more” European nations were now pre-positioning assets such as minehunters and minesweepers close to the Gulf to be ready for the “next phase” in the war.

He provided no details, and European nations have previously insisted they would not help to police the Strait of Hormuz until the war is over.

Increased defence spending

Many European countries have committed to ramping up defence spending in the face of fears over Trump’s commitment to NATO and Russia’s assault on Ukraine – a push underscored by several leaders in the Armenian capital.

“Europeans are taking their destiny into their own hands, increasing their defence and security spending, and building their own common solutions,” French President Emmanuel Macron said.

“We have to step up our military capabilities to be able to defend and protect ourselves,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters.

May 2 (UPI) — The Pentagon announced Friday that the United States would draw down 5,000 troops from Germany, and Germany responded Saturday that the move was anticipated.

The decision came after Chancellor Friederick Merz made comments criticizing the war with Iran, saying the United States has been “humiliated” by the war.

“The Secretary of War has ordered the withdrawal of approximately 5,000 troops from Germany,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement. “This decision follows a thorough review of the Department’s force posture in Europe and is in recognition of theater requirements and conditions on the ground. We expect the withdrawal to be completed over the next six to 12 months.”

President Donald Trump lashed out at Germany on Truth Social Thursday after Merz made the comments.

“The Chancellor of Germany should spend more time on ending the war with Russia/Ukraine (Where he has been totally ineffective!), and fixing his broken Country, especially Immigration and Energy, and less time on interfering with those that are getting rid of the Iran Nuclear threat, thereby making the World, including Germany, a safer place!” the president said.

At a visit to a school in Germany on Monday, Merz said U.S. officials had entered a war without a clear strategy, saying the “whole affair is ill-considered to say the least.”

“The Iranians are obviously very skilled at negotiating, or rather, very skillful at not negotiating, letting the Americans travel to Islamabad and then leave again without any result,” CNN reported Merz said. “An entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership, especially by these so-called Revolutionary Guards. And so I hope that this ends as quickly as possible.”

On Tuesday, Trump said that Merz “doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

In response to the announcement of the drawdown, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius downplayed the news and called it “foreseeable.”

He said it illustrated the need for Germany to take more responsibility for its own security and said the country is “on the right track.”

As of December 2025, there were 36,436 active-duty U.S. military personnel permanently stationed in Germany, according to the U.S. Defense Manpower Data Center.

After the removal of 5,000 troops, Germany will still host more than 30,000 U.S. personnel.

Trump also threatened to remove troops in 2020 when Angela Merkel was the chancellor.

On Friday, Trump told reporters in the White House that Italy had “not been of any help to us,” and accused Spain of being “absolutely horrible.” He said he may remove troops from those countries, too. Italy and Spain have denied any U.S. military planes that are used in the war against Iran from using their bases.

Germany has allowed limited use of its military infrastructure, though it hasn’t allowed its use as staging grounds for strikes.

Merz has said Germany will help if the war moves to a post-war stage, such as a stabilization mission, CNN reported. Berlin recently announced it was sending a naval minesweeper to the Strait of Hormuz once a lasting cease-fire deal is in place.

Lawmakers of both parties have opposed the decision to remove personnel from Europe.

Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Rep. Mike D. Rogers, R-Ala., chairs of the Senate and House Armed Services committees, issued a joint statement Saturday against the decision and telling the Department of Defense to work with the oversight committees. They said they were “very concerned” about the move.

“Rather than withdrawing forces from the continent altogether, it is in America’s interest to maintain a strong deterrent in Europe by moving these 5,000 U.S. forces to the east,” the statement said. “Allies there have made substantial investments to host U.S. troops, reducing costs for the U.S. taxpayer while strengthening NATO’s front line to help deter a far more costly conflict from ever beginning.

“Any significant change to the U.S. force posture in Europe warrants a deliberate review process and close coordination with Congress and our allies. We expect the Department to engage with its oversight committees in the days and weeks ahead on this decision.”

House Armed Services Committee member Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., said that pulling the troops isn’t “grounded in any coherent U.S. national security policy, strategy, or even analysis.”

“It is counter to what is needed and will embolden Russia,” Smith said in a statement Friday. “It doesn’t matter that our presence in Germany is essential to our national security. … It doesn’t matter that withdrawing a brigade combat team from Europe runs counter to the intent of the law that Congress passed overwhelmingly last year. All that matters are the hurt feelings of a president who is seeking political vengeance.”

Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, asked Trump to reverse the decision.

“Weakening our military footprint in Europe at a time when Russian forces continue to mercilessly attack Ukraine and harass our NATO allies is a priceless gift to [Russian President] Vladimir Putin and suggests American commitments to our allies are dependent on the president’s mood,” Reed said in a statement Friday.

President Donald Trump has feuded with European allies over their reluctance to step up support for war on Iran.

The United States military has said that it will pull 5,000 troops out of Germany amid ongoing tensions with the key European ally concerning the US war against Iran, according to media reports.

Reuters reported that the Pentagon made the decision on Friday, several days after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that Iran was humiliating the US during negotiations over the end of the war.

“The president is rightly reacting to these counterproductive remarks,” the report cites an anonymous official as saying.

The news service reported that the withdrawal is expected to take place over the next six to 12 months. The decision was also reported by CBS News, citing senior defence officials.

President Donald Trump has lashed out at European allies for not doing more to assist the US-Israel war on Iran, and had stated on Wednesday that he was thinking of pulling troops out of European countries deemed insufficiently supportive.

The US outlet Politico reported earlier this week that Trump’s threats to pull troops out of European countries caught the military by surprise, citing several anonymous defence officials and a congressional aide.

Trump attacked his German counterpart in another social media post on Thursday, stating that Merz should spend more time trying to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and less time “interfering with those that are getting rid of the Iran Nuclear threat, thereby making the World, including Germany, a safer place”.

While European countries have been hesitant to commit their own forces to the US war on Iran, leaders such as Merz were initially hesitant to offer criticism of the US attacks, widely considered illegal under international law.

But criticism has mounted as the war sends shocks across the global economy due to serious disruptions to regional energy supply. Earlier this week, Merz compared the war to previous military quagmires such as the US invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.

“It is, at the moment, a pretty tangled situation,” he said. “And it is costing us a great deal of money. This conflict, this war against Iran, has a direct impact on our economic output.”

The airline has confirmed that the route will be axed at the end of May despite running since 2018, as the price of jet fuel leads to cancellations of a number of flight routes across Europe

A major European airline has cancelled a route from the UK that has been running since 2018, and confirmed that it’ll no longer be available to book as of the end of the month.

The move comes as the German airline, one of the largest in Europe, also announced plans to cut 20,000 short-haul flights over the summer as conflict in the Middle East drives up jet fuel prices and has led to fears of shortages.

Lufthansa, the flag carrier airline for Germany, has announced it’ll no longer run its service between Glasgow and Frankfurt, and the last flight between the two cities available to book is on May 31.

A Lufthansa Group spokesman told the Scottish Sun: “Following the decision to discontinue Lufthansa CityLine flights effective immediately and to reduce unprofitable flights in the future due to high kerosene prices, the Lufthansa Group’s summer schedule will be reduced by just under one percent of available seat-kilometers.

“To compensate for this, Lufthansa has taken immediate action and will consolidate the flight schedules of all Lufthansa Group airlines, cancelling 20,000 flights by the end of October. As a result of these decisions, flights to Glasgow will no longer be operated by Lufthansa via Frankfurt, but for the time being, by Edelweiss via Zurich offering access to the Swiss International Air Lines network.”

Lufthansa isn’t the only European airline to cancel flights. Scandinavian airline SAS confirmed it’s cancelling over 1,000 flights after the cost of jet fuel doubled. In the USA, United Airlines announced it would be cancelling 5% of flights in the short term, aiming to restore its full schedule by autumn.

Other airlines are raising prices to try to cover the soaring costs. Virgin Atlantic has said the aviation sector “cannot absorb” jet‑fuel costs at their current levels, forcing them to increase ticket prices.

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Corneel Koster, Virgin Atlantic’s chief executive, told the Telegraph: “I was looking at improving our financial results by a really significant chunk. And then this happens. We have never seen jet fuel at these levels, with prices more than doubling. The industry cannot absorb increases like this.”

The airline has added a surcharge of £50 to its economy class tickets, while those in premium economy will need to pay another £180, and business class passengers will be faced with an additional £360 cost. However, the airline says these surcharges still don’t cover the rising costs.

After labour costs, fuel is the second-highest expense for airlines, and accounts for around 27% of its operating expenses. Prices for jet fuel have doubled since the conflict began, rising from $85 to $90 per barrel to $150 to $200 per barrel in recent weeks.

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April 30 (UPI) — U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans that could see cuts to the tens of thousands of U.S. forces stationed across 20 bases in Germany.

Writing on his Truth Social platform Wednesday night, Trump said the process of scaling back the United States’ eight-decade-long military presence was already underway.

“The United States is studying and reviewing the possible reduction of troops in Germany, with a determination to be made over the next short period of time,” Trump wrote.

The announcement came two days after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Iran was running circles around the United States in ongoing peace negotiations to end the military conflict, saying “the Americans clearly have no strategy.”

Lack of support for the war from European NATO allies has seen Trump and other senior U.S. officials repeatedly threaten to pull out of the 32-country defensive alliance, complaining that Europe was “freeriding” and never there for the United States when it needed it.

On Friday, a Pentagon leak suggested that Spain could face being suspended from NATO in retaliation for not supporting the United States in its war with Iran.

U.S. troop strength in Germany stood at 36,436, mainly army and air force personnel, stationed at 20 bases across the country in December, the latest month for which U.S. Department of Defense data is available.

That compares with around 28,000 across the rest of Europe, with the bulk of those deployed in Italy, Britain and Spain.

Active-duty personnel numbers in Germany were cut from more than 50,000 from 2013 to 2017 during President Barack Obama‘s second term, in line with a strategic shift in the United States’ defense priorities involving pivoting to the Asia-Pacific and reducing the focus on Europe.

Before that, numbers had fallen to 94,000 in the first half of the 1990s following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and then down to 71,000.

The United States currently has more than 54,000 troops in Japan, another 23,500 in South Korea and 7,000 in Guam.

There has been a continuous significant U.S. military presence in Germany since the end of World War II, initially as an army of occupation and then as the front-line of NATO deterrence during the Cold War and more recently as a bulwark against a resurgent threat to Europe from Russia.

Prosecutors say the man, identified only as ‘Sergej K’, has been in ‘continuous contact’ with Russian intelligence.

German authorities have arrested a Kazakh man in Berlin on suspicion of spying for Russia, according to the German Federal Prosecutor’s Office.

Identified only as Sergej K, the man had been “in continuous contact from Germany with a Russian intelligence service” since at least May last year, the office said in a statement on Wednesday, a day after the arrest.

Prosecutors said Sergej K provided his Russian handler with details about German military aid for Ukraine, including companies involved in developing drones and robotic systems. He also allegedly sent photos of NATO military convoys and public buildings in Berlin.

Other activities included offering to find other espionage agents in Germany, prosecutors added, but they did not make clear whether he had done so.

There was no immediate reaction from Kazakhstan or Russia.

Previous cases

The case is the latest in a string of Moscow-linked espionage and disinformation plots German authorities claim to have discovered since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Two German-Russian dual nationals were arrested in 2024 on suspicion of plotting sabotage attacks on United States military sites in Germany to undermine Western military support for Ukraine.

German police have also arrested various alleged “disposable” agents, known to carry out sabotage and espionage without any formal training for Russia in exchange for small payments.

Earlier this month, Berlin summoned the Russian ambassador to condemn what it called “direct threats” against “targets in Germany”.

Berlin’s Federal Foreign Office said at the time that the threats were intended to undermine Germany’s support for Ukraine. “Our response is clear: we will not be intimidated. Such threats and all forms of espionage in Germany are completely unacceptable,” the Foreign Office said.

Germany has also accused “state-sponsored” Russian hackers of carrying out an “intolerable” 2023 cyberattack on members of the Social Democratic Party, a charge that Russia’s embassy in Germany “categorically rejected”.

Meanwhile, Russia has essentially banned Germany’s international broadcaster Deutsche Welle on the grounds that it produces “hostile anti-Russian propaganda”.

Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement in Germany-based espionage schemes.

Follow the build-up, analysis and live text commentary of the semifinal first-leg from Parc des Princes in Paris.

German chancellor warns the US risks becoming bogged down in another quagmire similar to Iraq and Afghanistan.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz says the United States is being “humiliated” in its war with Iran, warning that Washington lacks a clear path out of the conflict as Tehran gains the upper hand.

Speaking to students in the German town of Marsberg on Monday, Merz said the situation has exposed a deeper strategic problem for the US as he drew comparisons with past military debacles.

“The problem with conflicts like this is always you don’t just have to get in – you have to get out again. We saw that very painfully in Afghanistan for 20 years. We saw it in Iraq,” he said.

Merz said Iranian officials were “obviously negotiating very skilfully” and appeared “clearly stronger than one thought”, adding that “an entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership”, particularly by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Merz urged a rapid end to the war, warning that the fallout was already hitting Germany’s economy.

“It is, at the moment, a pretty tangled situation,” he said. “And it is costing us a great deal of money. This conflict, this war against Iran, has a direct impact on our economic output.”

The German leader said Berlin remains ready to deploy minesweepers to help secure shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global petroleum supplies, but stressed that such steps depend on a cessation of hostilities.

Merz made the comments as concerns are growing across Europe over the wider impact of the conflict, including energy disruptions and economic instability.

Earlier, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul warned that nuclear threats continue to shape the security environment, even as Berlin reaffirmed its commitment to nonproliferation.

“As long as nuclear threats against us and our partners continue, we will need a credible deterrent,” he said before meetings at the United Nations on the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

France and Germany have recently moved to deepen cooperation on nuclear deterrence, reflecting mounting anxiety in Europe over both the Iran war and broader regional instability.

Video footage shared on social media shows two women being arrested at a pro-Palestine demonstration in Berlin. Participants waved Palestinian flags and chanted solidarity slogans amid a heavy police presence.

The best coming-of-age stories derive their power from being endings as much as beginnings. There’s often a clarifying, poignant harshness in the losses they depict. That applies — with sobering grace — to the memory ballad “Amrum,” set on Germany’s titular North Sea island in 1945, when the winds of a world war’s conclusion blow into a 12-year-old boy’s life with unexpected consequences.

The movie bears a curious credit: “A Hark Bohm film by Fatih Akin.” Bohm, who died last year at 86, was a highly respected film writer, actor and academic, a veteran of Germany’s New Wave. Realizing he’d be unable to direct his fictionalized childhood remembrance, he entrusted it to his mentee Akin, the firebrand behind modern German classics such as “Head-On” and “In the Fade.” The project became, according to Akin, like “adopting a child.”

In story terms, that child, a stand-in for Bohm himself, is wide-eyed, sensitive Nanning (well-cast newcomer Jasper Billerbeck), who works in the potato fields of local farmer Tessa (Diane Kruger, in a small but key role). At home, he has a pregnant mother, Hille (Laura Tonke), aunt Ena (Lisa Hagmeister) and two younger siblings, but not the high-ranking Nazi officer patriarch who relocated them from bombed-out Hamburg to an ancestral house on this tiny, beachy outpost. Pejoratively dubbed a mainlander by even the friendliest neighbors and generally viewed with suspicion for his family’s Nazi ties, Nanning is assured by his ideology-soaked mom that their roots, their “bloodline,” make them real Amlumers.

The boy’s first real lesson in the shifting sands comes when, at dinner, he remarks that the war will soon be over, intending it as good news — Dad could come home. Yet his mother reacts as if he’d sided with the enemy by wishing defeat. Later, with the news of Hitler’s demise, she sinks into a depression, refusing food unless it’s white bread, butter and honey, all in scarce supply. So Nanning sets out to secure her the necessary ingredients, as if the fabric of his world depends on it.

What follows is a tightly told fable-like journey built around the war-battered realities of survival when everyone’s tired, hungry and irritated. There are brutal truths in store for Nanning about what his family represents. It’s an evolving boyhood, framed with unshowy elegance by cinematographer Karl Walter Lindenlaub against the island’s flat, grassy, weather-rich horizons. “Amrum” avoids the sentimentality baked into so many childhood-during-wartime stories. Akin, as if inspired by the unfussy youthfulness that marked Italian neorealism and the New Waves in both France and Iran (there are shout-outs to “Bicycle Thieves” and “The 400 Blows”), zeroes in on the steady accumulation of detail rather than the trappings of cuteness or melodrama.

That measured approach, exemplified in star Billerbeck’s arresting simplicity and the many fine supporting turns around him, allows us to clock Nanning’s growing awareness of what matters to others, what’s impossible to ignore and how to interpret an unjust world that’s still full of beauty and kindness if you know where to look. Which, of course, includes inside himself.

Near the end, “Amrum” serves up a wonderfully understated moment: Nanning is invited to celebrate the war’s end with a small group of dancing, drinking islanders. He hangs back, though, as if not quite ready to choose their joyous relief over obediently tending to his broken family. But you can see this dutiful son’s wish to be one of them. For all of us wondering when an ugly time will fade, the moment will resonate like a cautious, dawning hope.

French President Emmanuel Macron said he welcomed the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the Lebanon ceasefire, as the US and Iran declared the key waterway open. His comments came as European leaders discuss a post-war Hormuz maritime force.

Many passengers are facing waits of up to three hours at Spanish airports due to the new controls

Travellers in Spain are experiencing significant delays at airports. And experts are warning that one particular group is bearing the brunt of new border controls, according to a Spanish travel organisation.

There have been widespread reports of waiting times of up to three hours. New regulations have been introduced, with some passengers in particular facing very long waits.

Spanish media reports indicate waiting times of up to three hours at Palma airport alone, with similar delays reported in France, Greece, Italy and beyond. Travel group Aviba is now calling for urgent measures to prevent chaos this coming summer.

Pedro Fiol, president of the travel association, is demanding immediate action to avert disruption this summer, and has revealed he has been pushing for such measures for months, according to Ultimata Hora. The new system has only just been introduced, having fully launched on April 10, following a trial period that began late last year.

The EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) initially began operations on 12 October 2025, with a phased rollout across 29 European countries. Now it is fully in place.

The system replaces passport stamping with digitally recorded entries, exits or refusals of entry of non-EU nationals arriving for short stays. Travellers’ facial images, fingerprints and personal data from the travel document will also be recorded.

Mr Fiol said: “The implementation of the new European Border and Security System (EES) is already beginning to be felt at the Balearic airports, especially at Son Sant Joan, the main gateway to Mallorca, where we are still operating with a hybrid model. At certain times, it is causing some slowdowns in the controls, particularly for non-EU passengers.”

He warned that “we are facing a structural change in how borders are managed across Europe: biometric registration is replacing manual passport stamping, and this means more time for the passenger’s first contact with their destination.” In his view, so far “the experience has been inconsistent: some days the operation runs relatively smoothly, while others, according to agencies and tour operators, can take more than two hours from the moment the plane lands until the traveller collects their luggage, and even nearly three hours in some specific cases.”

Ultima Hora reports that the National Police have acknowledged the delays, though they say they have seen no evidence of prolonged hold-ups. Sources close to the security forces have told Spanish media that additional staff have been deployed during peak hours in a bid to ease any difficulties that may occur during periods of heavy passenger congestion at checkpoints.

Travellers passing through airports in countries including France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain and Greece are facing waits of several hours at border controls, according to the Airports Council International (ACI). Olivier Jankovec, the director of the ACI European division, told the Financial Times: “This situation, in the coming weeks and certainly over the peak summer months, is going to be simply unmanageable.

“We are seeing those queueing times now, at peak times, when traffic is just starting to build up.” A spokesperson for the European Commission told the Guardian: “What we can see from the first days of full operation is that the system is working very well. In the overwhelming majority of member states there are no issues.”

The commission said that the average registration of a passenger was 70 seconds, although the ACI has claimed that it can take up to five minutes. The spokesperson said there were a “few member states where technical issues have been detected” but that they “are being addressed”.

They said: “It is up to member states to ensure the proper implementation of the EES on the ground.” Luke Fitzpatrick, from independent travel agency Perfect Getaways, told the BBC this week that travellers should plan ahead to make border checks as smooth as possible.

“It’s about being as prepared as you can be,” Fitzpatrick told BBC Radio Merseyside. “There is a lot of uncertainty at the moment as people are getting used to the new system.”

While he said the advice was to arrive at the airport “at least three hours early”, he said it could be more difficult for people booked on a package holiday. “If you’re on a shared transfer back, everyone’s coming together at the same time,” he said.

EES changes and the impact on transfer and pick-ups

Pedro Fiol told Ultima Hora that “this situation is forcing a restructuring of transfer and pick-up operations at destinations to better co-ordinate exact times, avoid additional downtime, and guarantee the smoothest possible service.” Given this situation, he says that “travel agencies are concerned that if resources are not properly allocated at airports with such high tourist pressure as those in the Balearic Islands, significant queues and a negative first experience for visitors are possible.”

What do Brit tourists need to do with EES rules?

The govuk website states that “if you are travelling to a country in the Schengen area for a short stay using a UK passport, you may be required to register your biometric details, such as fingerprints and a photo, when you arrive. You do not need to take any action before you arrive at the border, and there is no cost for EES registration.

“EES registration is replacing the current system of manually stamping passports when visitors arrive in the EU. EES may take each passenger extra time to complete so be prepared to wait longer than usual at the border.”

The countries in the Schengen area are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

The German military has revealed details of tests in which its tiny Wiesel armored personnel carrier has been airdropped under parachutes from A400M transport aircraft. While the diminutive Wiesel (German for weasel) is already notably mobile, including fitting into a CH-53 helicopter, this appears to be the first time that it has been airdropped, marking an initial step toward a significant new capability for Germany’s airborne forces.

The German Army posted a video showing the airdrop trials, which involved, among others, the German Armed Forces’ Technical and Airworthiness Center for Aircraft (WTD 61) and the 1st Airborne Brigade (Luftlandebrigade 1).

The video shows the tracked Wiesel first being loaded into the hold of an A400M within its ‘cage,’ the ATAX parachute system from the British manufacturer IrvinGQ. The load is then rolled off the aircraft’s rear ramp and descends under three parachutes. Reusable shock-attenuating airbags under the cage provide a softer touchdown. Soldiers then drive the vehicle directly off the pallet, without any significant preparation.

According to the German Army, the aim is to deliver the vehicle within 200 meters (650 feet) of the designated landing zone.

As for the Wiesel, as you can read about here, this vehicle already offers some unique capabilities.

60 Sekunden Bundeswehr: Wiesel

The German Army first began development of the vehicle in the 1970s to give added firepower to its airborne units. Initially led by Porsche, work on the project continued after the German Army abandoned its plans for the vehicle in 1975.

Ultimately, the German Army returned to the Wiesel and bought its first batch in 1985, becoming the only country to adopt the type. Rheinmetall took over series production and built more than 340 examples up until 1993. In 2001, Germany purchased around 180 lengthened Wiesel 2s.

In a drive toward simplicity, the Wiesel uses a standard four-cylinder diesel car engine from Volkswagen. The vehicle can reach a top speed of over 40 miles per hour and travel around 120 miles on one tank of gas, which is relatively impressive when you consider its diminutive size.

Perhaps the most remarkable feature of the Wiesel is its weight. There are more than a dozen variants in total, and the heaviest of them weighs less than five tons. For comparison, the latest examples of up-armored Humvees weigh around six tons.

The Wiesel’s modest size means two of the standard variants fit inside a CH-53 series helicopter and at least one into a CH-47. Heavy helicopters can carry more slung below their fuselages, too. An A400M typically carries four of the vehicles, but it’s unclear how many can be airdropped by a single A400M, after they have been rigged up.

Considering its capabilities, it is perhaps surprising that Germany has waited so long to test the airdropping of the Wiesel. In fact, until now, the modern German Army has had no means of airdropping vehicles into the theater of operations.

Instead, airborne operations have required paratroopers to first secure landing strips before vehicles can be delivered by tactical transport or heavy-lift helicopter. Until those vehicles arrive, the troops have only limited direct tactical fire support.

With the ability to airdrop the Wiesel, paratroopers and their combat vehicles can be delivered directly to their objective, without the need for any supporting infrastructure. While the Wiesel doesn’t offer the highest level of armor protection, it does at least shield its occupants against shrapnel, rifle, and light machine gun fire. On the other hand, since it was first fielded, it now faces the threat of battlefield drones and loitering munitions, although its small size and maneuverability could help mitigate that threat in some respects. Overall, like all armored vehicles, it would still be vulnerable.

Once on the ground, the Wiesel offers a significant amount of capability for its size. The most common version is a reconnaissance vehicle with a 20mm automatic cannon and a 7.62mm machine gun, more firepower than many American light armored vehicles. Another type packs a Spike anti-tank missile launcher, the Israeli weapon having replaced the earlier TOW anti-tank missile.

There is also the Leichtes Flugabwehr System, or Light Air Defense System, which includes a command post Wiesel 2 variant and another one of the vehicles with a small radar. This last component of the system is known as Ozelot, or ocelot, and features a launcher containing four FIM-92 Stinger heat-seeking surface-to-air missiles. This is a level of small, mobile, but still somewhat protected short-range air defense capability that few nations have.

Other Wiesel ‘families’ include a mobile mortar section, including a vehicle with a computerized 120mm mortar. There are also different command post versions for unit headquarters, along with ambulances and engineering support types. In the past, there have also been studies for an uncrewed ground combat vehicle variant.

Once again, it’s not clear which of these versions might be cleared for airdropping, considering their different weights, dimensions, and the relative resilience of their equipment.

Should the trials prove successful, the ATAX parachute system would also allow the German Army to airdrop other vehicles. According to the German-language hartpunkt defense publication, these could include the airmobile Caracal, other light utility vehicles as used by both regular forces and special operations units, and uncrewed ground vehicles. Ultimately, airdropping with ATAX would also extend to the Wiesel’s designated successor, now being developed under the Luftbeweglicher Waffenträger, or Airmobile Weapon Carrier program.

These tests come as the German Armed Forces undergo their biggest transformation since the Cold War in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. As well as increased defense spending, there is a broader attempt to move from a low-readiness, expeditionary force to a high-readiness, territorial military focused on operations on NATO’s eastern flank. With that in mind, these latest airdrop tests for the Wiesel could be the start of a significant new phase for the airborne troops and their capabilities.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

Follow the build-up and live text commentary of the game as Madrid look to come back from 2-1 first-leg defeat.